Reading a Newspaper/Transcript
Transcript Text reads: The Mysteries of Life with Tim & Moby A newspaper titled "THE DAILY PAPER" is dropped onto a black screen. Then Tim and Moby were sitting at a table. Both of them are reading a newspaper. Moby also has a dictionary open on the table in front of him, and he’s glancing at both the dictionary and the newspaper. TIM: Hey, could you pass me the front page? MOBY: Beep! TIM: Come on, Moby. You've had it for 20 minutes! A letter appears on the screen, which Tim reads aloud. TIM: Dear Tim and Moby, I want to read the newspaper in the morning, but I don't know where to start. From, Alan. Reading the newspaper is a great thing to do because you find out all sorts of things that are going on in the world. Plus, you improve your reading skills. And looking up words you don't know, you can improve your vocabulary, too! Moby pats the dictionary with his hand. MOBY: Beep! TIM: First and foremost, newspapers give you information in the form of news stories and interviews. The front page is a good place to start because that's where you'll find the day's biggest news stories. The front page of a newspaper appears on the screen, and two headlines are shown: "OIL SPILL THREATENS ARCTIC WILDLIFE" and "GIANT PANDA ARRIVES AT NATIONAL ZOO". TIM: Usually, the most important stories of the day will go at the top of the front page and in the first few pages of the main news section. News stories are impartial accounts of what went on. MOBY: Beep? TIM: Impartial? It just means that the writers aren't trying to prove any particular point or tell you what's right and what's wrong; they're just giving you the facts. A good story will tell you the who, what, when, where, why, and how of a specific event. An article appears on the screen with a picture of a panda in the upper-right corner, and then Tim reads its first two sentences aloud. TIM: For example: "The National Zoo today acquired a third giant panda. Sun Sun, a 90-kilogram female, is a gift from the People’s Republic of China. She was brought to the U.S. aboard a Boeing 747." Most news stories contain a headline, or the title of the news story; body text, the meat and potatoes of the story; and a byline, which is the name or names of the main reporter or reporters contributing to the story. An arrow points to each piece of the article mentioned by Tim. The headline is at the top of the article and reads "GIANT PANDA ARRIVES AT NATIONAL ZOO". The byline appears just below the headline and reads "DARYL KHAN". The body of the story takes up the rest of the page. TIM: Most newspaper articles include quotes from people who are related to the news in some way. Quotes come from interviews, which happen when a writer or reporter asks questions of a particular person related to the news story. Another article appears on the screen with a picture of woman on the right labeled "Dr. Janice Garcia". An excerpt from the article is shown. Text reads: "Well, this spill could be quite serious, I’m afraid." said Dr. Janice Garcia, an environmental expert. MOBY: Beep? Beep? TIM: Well, in most large newspapers, you'll find world news, national news, and local or metro news. There are also whole sections devoted to opinions. Tim holds up three different newspaper sections titled "WORLD NEWS", "NATIONAL NEWS", and "METRO NEWS". TIM: The editorial page is where you'll find persuasive writing, writing that wants you to feel or act or think a certain way. An editorial article appears on the screen titled "FINDING MORE FOSSIL FUELS IS NOT THE ANSWER". TIM: Advice columns are another example of persuasive writing. Features, like leisure, travel, arts, sports, and comics, make up the entertainment part of the paper. An advice column appears on the screen titled "ASK CASSIE". Then several sections of a newspaper appear on the screen with the titles "LEISURE", "TRAVEL", "ARTS", "SPORTS" and "COMICS". TIM: Newspapers also usually contain things like a calendar of local events, classified and other advertisements, television listings, and plenty of other stuff. A calendar of events, an advertisement, and TV listings appear on the screen. MOBY: Beep? Both of them are still reading the newspaper. Moby also has a dictionary open in front of him. TIM: If an article you're reading is hard to understand, ask a parent or teacher for some help with it. And if you want to write for your school newspaper, or maybe even a local or national newspaper someday, then reading the paper is a great way to get to know the medium. An image of four students in a school newspaper office appears, with the students dressed in casual clothes. It shifts to an image of the same students in a local newspaper office, this time dressed in work clothes. TIM: Yep, reading the newspaper is a good thing all around. The newspaper is folded up on the table in front of him. Moby is still reading the newspaper and he's glancing at the dictionary, too. TIM: I just wish Moby would hurry up with the front page. You're not looking up every word, are you? MOBY: Beep? Category:BrainPOP Transcripts